Learn to use powerful Python libraries for effective data processing and analysisAbout This BookLearn the basic processing steps in data analysis and how to use Python in this area through supported packages, especially Numpy, Pandas, and MatplotlibCreate, manipulate, and analyze your data to extract useful information to optimize your systemA hands-on guide to help you learn data analysis using Python Who This Book Is For If you are a Python developer who wants to get started with data analysis and you need a quick introductory guide to the python data analysis libraries, then this book is for you.What You Will LearnUnderstand the importance of data analysis and get familiar with its processing stepsGet acquainted with Numpy to use with arrays and array-oriented computing in data analysisCreate effective visualizations to present your data using MatplotlibProcess and analyze data using the time series capabilities of PandasInteract with different kind of database systems, such as file, disk format, Mongo, and RedisApply the supported Python package to data analysis applications through examplesExplore predictive analytics and machine learning algorithms using Scikit-learn, a Python library In Detail Data analysis is the process of applying logical and analytical reasoning to study each component of data. Python is a multi-domain, high-level, programming language. It’s often used as a *ing language because of its forgiving syntax and operability with a wide variety of different eco-systems. Python has powerful standard libraries or toolkits such as Pylearn2 and Hebel, which offers a fast, reliable, cross-platform environment for data analysis. With this book, we will get you started with Python data analysis and show you what its advantages are. The book starts by introducing the principles of data analysis and supported libraries, along with NumPy basics for statistic and data processing. Next it provides an overview of the Pandas package and uses its powerful features to solve data processing problems. Moving on, the book takes you through a brief overview of the Matplotlib API and some common plotting functions for DataFrame such as plot. Next, it will teach you to manipulate the time and data structure, and load and store data in a file or database using Python packages. The book will also teach you how to apply powerful packages in Python to process raw data into pure and helpful data using examples. Finally, the book gives you a brief overview of machine learning algorithms, that is, applying data analysis results to make decisions or build helpful products, such as recommendations and predictions using scikit-learn.Style and approach This is an easy-to-follow, step-by-step guide to get you familiar with data analysis and the libraries supported by Python. Topics are explained with real-world examples wherever required.

Successfully scrape data from any website with the power of PythonAbout This BookA hands-on guide to web scraping with real-life problems and solutionsTechniques to download and extract data from complex websitesCreate a number of different web scrapers to extract information Who This Book Is For This book is aimed at developers who want to use web scraping for legitimate purposes. Prior programming experience with Python would be useful but not essential. Anyone with general knowledge of programming languages should be able to pick up the book and understand the principals involved.What You Will LearnExtract data from web pages with simple Python programmingBuild a threaded crawler to process web pages in parallelFollow links to crawl a websiteDownload cache to reduce bandwidthUse multiple threads and processes to scrape fasterLearn how to parse JavaScript-dependent websitesInteract with forms and sessionsSolve CAPTCHAs on protected web pagesDiscover how to track the state of a crawl In Detail The Internet contains the most useful set of data ever assembled, largely publicly accessible for free. However, this data is not easily reusable. It is embedded within the structure and style of websites and needs to be carefully extracted to be useful. Web scraping is becoming increasingly useful as a means to easily gather and make sense of the plethora of information available online. Using a simple language like Python, you can crawl the information out of complex websites using simple programming. This book is the ultimate guide to using Python to scrape data from websites. In the early chapters it covers how to extract data from static web pages and how to use caching to manage the load on servers. After the basics we'll get our hands dirty with building a more sophisticated crawler with threads and more advanced topics. Learn step-by-step how to use Ajax URLs, employ the Firebug extension for monitoring, and indirectly scrape data. Discover more scraping nitty-gritties such as using the browser renderer, managing cookies, how to submit forms to extract data from complex websites protected by CAPTCHA, and so on. The book wraps up with how to create high-level scrapers with Scrapy libraries and implement what has been learned to real websites.Style and approach This book is a hands-on guide with real-life examples and solutions starting simple and then progressively becoming more complex. Each chapter in this book introduces a problem and then provides one or more possible solutions.

Get started with Amazon S3 for virtually unlimited cloud and Internet storageAbout This BookFamiliarize yourself with the concepts of Amazon S3Understand basic operations of bucket, folders, and objects using Amazon S3 SDK JavaLeverage the power of Amazon S3 to effectively store and retrieve data Who This Book Is For This book is intended for System Engineers/ Developers, Software Architects, Project managers, and users who want to explore Amazon S3 SDK Java. If you want to learn about Amazon S3 quickly, then this book is for you. Basic knowledge of Java programming is expected.What You Will LearnStart with the basic concepts of Amazon S3 to get you goingUse Copy Object and Multipart Copy Object for objects of different sizesUnderstand how to use the amazon management console for Amazon S3Learn how to use the AWS SDK of Java and consume the Amazon S3Get to grips with managing the bucket life cycleConfigure CORS to share resources to a different domainDiscover how to develop and deploy the static website on Amazon S3 using different services of Amazon In Detail Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3), provides developers and IT teams with secure, durable, and highly-scalable object storage. Amazon S3 is easy to use, with a simple web services interface to store and retrieve any amount of data from anywhere on the web. S3 is automatically web scalable and responds to the requirements of your application and traffic, and therefore offers a key element to help companies deal dynamically with any spike in traffic for their application (such as a free e-book offer). This book starts with the basics of the Amazon S3 and its features, and you will quickly get an understanding how to use the Amazon Management Console for Amazon S3 which is the simplest way to manage Amazon S3. Next, we will cover basic operations on bucket, folder, objects. Once the basic operations are understood, you will know how to use Amazon S3 using Java SDK. Following that, you will learn about Copy Objects and Multipart copy objects for large objects size. You will also learn to manage the life cycle of bucket and how to share resources to the different domain by configuring CORS. The book will then guide you through the development and deployment of a static website on Amazon S3 using different services of Amazon. By the end of the book, you will be able to create a scalable application using Amazon S3.Style and approach This fast-paced book is a pragmatic guide to writing Amazon S3 applications. Each chapter is blended beautifully with lucid concepts and pertinent examples.

Build real-world, industry-strength data storage solutions with time-tested design methodologies using CassandraAbout This BookExplore design patterns which co-exist with legacy data stores, migration from RDBMS, and caching technologies with CassandraLearn about design patterns and use Cassandra to provide consistency, availability, and partition tolerance guarantees for applicationsHandle temporal data for analytical purposes Who This Book Is For This book is intended for big data developers who are familiar with the basics of Cassandra and wish to understand and utilize Cassandra design patterns to develop real-world big data solutions. Prior knowledge of RDBMS solutions is assumed.What You Will LearnEnable Cassandra to co-exist with RDBMS and other legacy data storesExplore various design patterns to build effective and robust storage solutionsMigrate from RDBMS-based data stores and caching solutions to CassandraUnderstand the behaviour of Cassandra when trying to balance the needs of consistency, availability, and partition toleranceDeal with time stamps related to data effectivelySee how Cassandra can be used in analytical use casesApply the design patterns covered in this book in real-world use cases In Detail There are many NoSQL data stores used by big data applications. Cassandra is one of the most widely used NoSQL data stores that is frequently used by a huge number of heavy duty Internet-scale applications. Unlike the RDBMS world, the NoSQL landscape is very diverse and there is no one way to model data stores. This mandates the need to have good solutions to commonly seen data store design problems. Cassandra addresses such common problems simply. If you are new to Cassandra but well-versed in RDBMS modeling and design, then it is natural to model data in the same way in Cassandra, resulting in poorly performing applications and losing the real purpose of Cassandra. If you want to learn to make the most of Cassandra, this book is for you. This book starts with strategies to integrate Cassandra with other legacy data stores and progresses to the ways in which a migration from RDBMS to Cassandra can be accomplished. The journey continues with ideas to migrate data from cache solutions to Cassandra. With this, the stage is set and the book moves on to some of the most commonly seen problems in applications when dealing with consistency, availability, and partition tolerance guarantees. Cassandra is exceptionally good at dealing with temporal data and patterns such as the time-series pattern and log pattern, which are covered next. Many NoSQL data stores fail miserably when a huge amount of data is read for analytical purposes, but Cassandra is different in this regard. Keeping analytical needs in mind, you’ll walk through different and interesting design patterns. No theoretical discussions are complete without a good set of use cases to which the knowledge gained can be applied, so the book concludes with a set of use cases you can apply the patterns you’ve learned.Style and approach This book is written in very simple language and an engaging style complete with examples in every chapter and real-world use cases at the end of the book.

Accelerate your code writing skills with over twenty programming patterns that will make your code easier to maintain and scaleAbout This BookOptimize your web application for production useBuild views and controllers with minimal effort that will evolve with your applicationLearn how to maintain a MeteorJS project while it is running in production Who This Book Is For This book is for developers who have already had an introductory course with Meteor. Basic knowledge of web development is recommended.What You Will LearnUse of Jade, Stylus, and CoffeeScript to speed up web developmentIncrease productivity by leveraging the best packages in the communityOptimize your site for load speed with advanced publishers and subscribersLeverage the aggregation framework to produce results with big dataMaster the intricacies of front-end development using Jeet, Bootstrap, CSS animations, and moreOptimize your site for search engine visibilitySecure your site with Meteor’s best practicesTrack the live status of your application, ensuring all errors have been taken care of In Detail With the increasing interest in NodeJS web applications, a new framework, Meteor, has joined the ranks to simplify developer workflows. Meteor is one of the few open source frameworks that has received funding since its early development stages. It builds on ideas from existing frameworks and libraries, offering developers an easy way to develop a prototype app. At the same time, it gives them the tools and flexibility to build a fully fledged production app. Meteor is the weapon of choice for start-ups in today’s world. Meteor Design Patterns cuts through the jargon that most websites play with and gets to the point with simple solutions that will boost your development skills. We start off with a refresher on the basics of JavaScript programming such as templates, CoffeeScript, the Event Loop, and the Merge Box, amongst others. You then learn how to map real-world data and optimize the data’s publishers to output data with the least amount of work done by the server with some subscribe and publish patterns. Next, using front-end patterns, you will learn how to create maintainable and trackable forms, and make our site crawlable by any search engine. Following this, you will see how to optimize and secure the web application and maintain applications without breaking other features. Finally, you will learn how to deploy a secure production-ready application while learning to set up modulus, compose with Oplog tracking and SSL certificates, as well as error tracking with Kadira. Throughout the book, you will put your skills to practice and build an online shop from scratch. By the end of the book, you will have built a feature-rich online shop.Style and approach The book is a practical handbook on how to build an e-commerce web app using Meteor. Every topic ties into the webapp to easily illustrate the concepts that you are learning about.

Explore the big data field and learn how to perform data analytics and predictive modelling in STATAAbout This BookVisualize and analyse data in STATA to devise a business strategyLearn STATA programming and predictive modelingDiscover how you can become a data scientist with the power of STATA Who This Book Is For This book is for all the professionals and students who want to learn STATA programming and apply predictive modelling concepts. This book is also very helpful for experienced STATA programmers as it provides advanced statistical modelling concepts and their application.What You Will LearnPerform important statistical tests to become a STATA data scientistBe guided through how to program in STATAImplement logistic and linear regression modelsVisualize and program the data in STATAAnalyse survey data, time series data, and survival dataPerform database management in STATA In Detail STATA is an integrated software package that provides you with everything you need for data analysis, data management, and graphics. STATA also provides you with a platform to efficiently perform simulation, regression analysis (linear and multiple) [and custom programming. This book covers data management, graphs visualization, and programming in STATA. Starting with an introduction to STATA and data analytics you’ll move on to STATA programming and data management. Next, the book takes you through data visualization and all the important statistical tests in STATA. Linear and logistic regression in STATA is also covered. As you progress through the book, you will explore a few analyses, including the survey analysis, time series analysis, and survival analysis in STATA. You’ll also discover different types of statistical modelling techniques and learn how to implement these techniques in STATA.Style and approach This book is a hands-onguide to STATA programming and statistical modelling providing many STATA code examples and taking. You through the working of the code in detail.

Explore clustering algorithms used with Apache MahoutAbout This BookUse Mahout for clustering datasets and gain useful insightsExplore the different clustering algorithms used in day-to-day workA practical guide to create and evaluate your own clustering models using real world data sets Who This Book Is For This book is for developers who want to try out clustering on large datasets using Mahout. It will also be useful for those users who don’t have background in Mahout, but have knowledge of basic programming and are familiar with basics of machine learning and clustering. It will be helpful if you know about clustering techniques with some other tool.What You Will LearnExplore clustering algorithms and cluster evaluation techniquesLearn different types of clustering and distance measuring techniquesPerform clustering on your data using K-Means clusteringDiscover how canopy clustering is used as pre-process step for K-MeansUse the Fuzzy K-Means algorithm in Apache MahoutImplement Streaming K-Means clustering in MahoutLearn Spectral K-Means clustering implementation of Mahout In Detail As more and more organizations are discovering the use of big data analytics, interest in platforms that provide storage, computation, and analytic capabilities has increased. Apache Mahout caters to this need and paves the way for the implementation of complex algorithms in the field of machine learning to better analyse your data and get useful insights into it. Starting with the introduction of clustering algorithms, this book provides an insight into Apache Mahout and different algorithms it uses for clustering data. It provides a general introduction of the algorithms, such as K-Means, Fuzzy K-Means, StreamingKMeans, and how to use Mahout to cluster your data using a particular algorithm. You will study the different types of clustering and learn how to use Apache Mahout with real world data sets to implement and evaluate your clusters. This book will discuss about cluster improvement and visualization using Mahout APIs and also explore model-based clustering and topic modelling using Dirichlet process. Finally, you will learn how to build and deploy a model for production use.Style and approach This book is a hand's-on guide with examples using real-world datasets. Each chapter begins by explaining the algorithm in detail and follows up with showing how to use mahout for that algorithm using example data-sets.

This is Lilian’s story, one of four stories from The Sugar Girls. During the Blitz and the years of rationing, the Sugar Girls kept Britain sweet. The work was back-breakingly hard, but the Tate & Lyle factory was more than just a workplace - it was a community, a calling, a place of love and support and an uproarious, tribal part of East London. ‘When Lilian Tull came to Tate & Lyle shortly after the end of the war, she was older than most new arrivals. A lanky, fairhaired woman of 23, she worked in the can-making department, where the Golden Syrup tins were assembled. Lilian had arrived on the job with a heavy heart, and her colleagues noticed a sad, far-away look in her eyes.’ In the years leading up to and after the Second World War thousands of women left school at fourteen to work in the bustling factories of London’s East End. Despite long hours, hard and often hazardous work, factory life afforded exciting opportunities for independence, friendship and romance. Of all the factories that lined the docks, it was at Tate & Lyle’s where you could earn the most generous wages and enjoy the best social life, and it was here where The Sugar Girls worked. This is an evocative, moving story of hunger, hardship and happiness, providing a moving insight into a lost way of life, as well as a timeless testament to the experience of being young and female. Includes Lilian’s own personal photographs of life as a sugar girl.

Five incredible true stories of canine bravery in wartime. For as long as dogs have lived alongside man, they have saved their lives in wartime with their bravery, loyalty and companionship. From the WWII dog that was adopted by the Royal Navy as a mascot, torpedoed, shot at and registered as a prisoner of war, to the more recent heroics of explosives dog, Bonnie, in Afghanistan and Iraq where she saved hundreds of military and civilian lives, this is a collection of the most incredible and heartwarming accounts from around the world. Capturing the fear, uncertainly, determination and undying devotion of these amazing dogs and the young soldiers, sailors and airmen they befriended, these are truly inspirational tales of loyalty and companionship beyond all boundaries.

A second collection of incredible and heart-warming canine stories from around the world, from the bestselling author of The Dog That Saved My Life. Animals have accompanied man into battle since war first waged. Since those times, many stories have been told of the bears, camels, cats, dolphins, monkeys, mules, rats and other creatures that have served with the Armed Forces during both world wars and beyond. The four stories in this book represent the devotion and unquestioning loyalty of the canine companion in the darkest days of war. From the stub-tailed Bull Terrier that became a hero of the First World War, and the most decorated dog in history, after his bravery in the trenches of Flanders, to the remarkable loyalty of an Iraqi stray dog who attached himself to British troops in North Port and then patrolled their camp every night, protecting them from being attacked by the vicious packs of dogs living in the desert, each is an incredible tale of wartime bravery as well as an example of inspiring commitment and courage.

During the Blitz, the Sugar Girls kept Britain sweet. The work was back-breakingly hard, but the Tate & Lyle factory was more than just a workplace - it was a community, a calling, a place of love and support and an uproarious, tribal part of East London. This is Ethel’s story, one of four stories from The Sugar Girls. ‘On an autumn day in 1944, Ethel Alleyne walked the short distance from her house to Tate & Lyle’s refinery on the shining curve of the Thames. Looking up at the giant gates, Ethel felt like she had been preparing for this moment all her life. She smoothed down her frizzy hair, scraped a bit of dirt off the corner of her shoe and strode through. She was quite unprepared for the sight that met her eyes …’ In the years leading up to and after the Second World War thousands of women left school at fourteen to work in the bustling factories of London’s East End. Despite long hours, hard and often hazardous work, factory life afforded exciting opportunities for independence, friendship and romance. Of all the factories that lined the docks, it was at Tate and Lyle’s where you could earn the most generous wages and enjoy the best social life, and it was here where The Sugar Girls worked. This is an evocative, moving story of hunger, hardship and happiness, providing a moving insight into a lost way of life, as well as a timeless testament to the experience of being young and female.

This is Gladys’s story, one of four stories from The Sugar Girls. During the Blitz and the years of rationing, the Sugar Girls kept Britain sweet. The work was back-breakingly hard, but the Tate & Lyle factory was more than just a workplace - it was a community, a calling, a place of love and support and an uproarious, tribal part of East London. ‘Gladys changed into her new uniform. The dungarees hung loosely on her boyish frame, the crotch resting somewhere down by her knees and the backside looking like a crumpled sack waiting to be filled with potatoes. The short-sleeved blouse seemed to have been designed with a buxom matron in mind, and one with arms as thick as her legs, not a skinny, flat-chested 14-year-old. What kind of monstrous creatures worked in this Blue Room?’ In the years leading up to and after the Second World War thousands of women left school at fourteen to work in the bustling factories of London’s East End. Despite long hours, hard and often hazardous work, factory life afforded exciting opportunities for independence, friendship and romance. Of all the factories that lined the docks, it was at Tate & Lyle’s where you could earn the most generous wages and enjoy the best social life, and it was here where The Sugar Girls worked. This is an evocative, moving story of hunger, hardship and happiness, providing a moving insight into a lost way of life, as well as a timeless testament to the experience of being young and female. Includes Gladys’s own personal photographs of life as a sugar girl.

Pamela Petro has been educated at Brown, Paris and Harvard Universities; in 1983 she went to the University of Wales at Lampeter for the first time, to do her MA, returning in 1992 for intensive instruction in the Welsh language. She has since taught Welsh and travel writing in the USA. She regularly contributes to the New York Times Travel Section and to Planet, and has compiled a guide to New England. This is her first ‘real’ book. She has, by the way, no Welsh blood.

Hugh Thomas is a surgeon and forensic expert of international repute. His 1979 book, The Murder of Rudolf Hess, caused a world-wide furore as it alleged that the prisoner in Spandau Gaol was not Rudolf Hess. His second book Hess: A Tale of Two Murders precipitated a six month Scotland Yard inquiry which saw its report immediately suppressed.

ntoars din Irlanda, Diane este hotrt s nceap o via nou la Paris. Cu ajutorul prietenului su, Félix, redeschide cafeneaua literar Oamenii fericii citesc i beau cafea“, oaza ei de linite. Acolo l ntlnete pe Olivier. Un brbat blnd i atent, care nelege refuzul ei de a deveni din nou mam, dup pierderea cumplit pe care a suferito.Dar o ntmplare neateptat o bulverseaz pe Diane i i spulber toate certitudinile.Va avea ea oare curajul de ai construi un nou cmin"Talentul de povestitoare al lui Agnès MartinLugand este incontestabil cunoate n profunzime alfabetul complicat al iubirii." - Le Figaro"Agnès MartinLugand are un sim nnscut al povestirii." - L'Express

S-au cunoscut prin intermediul unui site de ?nt?lniri amoroase. Dar n-au devenit iubi?i, ci prieteni.?i a?a vor s? r?m?n?. Ea e actri??. El e scriitor.Ea e Mia. El e Paul.Ea e britanic?. El e american.Ea se ascunde ?n Montmartre. El locuie?te ?n Marais.Ea are mult succes. El nu prea.De fapt, ea e faimoas? – de?i el nu-?i d? seama.Ea se simte singur?. ?i el.El e amuzant. Ea face gaf? dup? gaf?.Ea nu trebuie s? se ?ndr?gosteasc?. Nici el. Marc Levy revine la vechile lui teme cu aceast? comedie irezistibil? ?i imprevizibil? despre dragoste ?i prietenie.

Cnd eram mic – pe la doisprezece-treisprezece ani –, eram absolut convins c o carte bun trebuie s aib un brbat drept erou i lucrul sta m ntrista foarte tare. Dar dup vreo doi ani faza aceea s-a ncheiat. La cincisprezece ani, am nceput s scriu poveti despre fete curajoase aflate n situaii dificile. ns am rmas cu convingerea – e adevrat, tot mai accentuat – c cei mai mari povestitori sunt brbaii i c, dac vrei s scrii, trebuie s nvei s povesteti ca ei.“ – Elena Ferrante O capodoper modern a uneia dintre scriitoarele italiene cele mai apreciate, Prietena mea genial este o poveste complex i emoionant despre dou prietene, Elena i Lila. Aciunea romanului este plasat n anii 1950, n mahalalele unui Napoli cenuiu. Elena i Lila cresc mpreun pe strzile pe care se duc rzboaiele ntre bande rivale i nva s aib ncredere deplin una n cealalt. Prietenia lor rmne profund, n ciuda drumurilor diferite pe care le va purta destinul. Prezentnd vieile a dou femei, Ferrante spune povestea unei mahalale, a unui ora i a unei ri care sufer transformri ce vor influena, la rndul lor, relaia dintre protagoniste, memorabilele Elena i Lila. Cine va reui s lase n urm universul dur al unei copilrii pe jumtate condamnate – Lilla cea descurcrea i ntreprinztoare sau Elena cea sfioas, ndrgostit de romane i pasionat de digresiuni filosofice Elena i Lila simbolizeaz o naiune supus unor transformri majore, iar portretul pe care Ferrante l face eroinelor sale reprezint o impresionant meditaie asupra istoriei i a prieteniei dintre oameni. Elena Ferrante este pseudonimul unei romanciere italiene. A publicat ase cri, printre care Amore molesto i I giorni dell 'abbandono, descris ca rvitoare“ de ctre prestigiosul cotidian New York Times. Prietena mea genial este primul roman dintr-o serie despre dou fete inteligente i descurcree din Napoli, care ncearc s-i construiasc o via ntr-o cultur violent i opresiv. Ferrante scrie sub semnul urgenei, cu aviditate i pasiune.“ – The San Francisco Chronicle Prietena mea genial este unul dintre cele mai nuanate portrete ale prieteniei dintre femei din memoria recent.“ – Vogue

Ac?iunea romanului Catch-22 se concentreaz? asupra evenimentelor dintr-o baz? militar? american? fictiv?, ?n ultimele luni ale celui de-al Doilea R?zboi Mondial. Neobi?nuitul protagonist al pove?tii este Yossarian, un erou de o inventivitate ?i o energie inepuizabile, hot?r?t s? supravie?uiasc? r?zboiului cu orice pre?. Romanul oscileaz? ?ntre comic ?i teroare cu o u?urin?? fenomenal?, explor?nd ingenios absurdul existen?ei ?ntr-un mediu ?n care oamenii au ?ncetat s?-?i mai vorbeasc?. Birocra?ia ?i autismul sunt acum la ordinea zilei, ca ?i violen?a ?i amenin?area mor?ii, iar p?strarea judec??ii ?i a sim?ului realit??ii necesit? eforturi aproape supraomene?ti.

A plecat din Paris s? se uite pe sine. Dragostea pe care o va ?nt?lni va schimba totul.Povestea lui Diane ?ncepe ?n mod brutal cu moartea so?ului ?i a feti?ei sale, eveniment care o arunc? ?n cea mai cumplit? depresie. Totul se opre?te ?n loc, ?n afar? de inima ei, care continu? s? bat?. Cu ?nc?p???nare. Dureros. Zadarnic.C?nd cel mai bun prieten ?i asociat ?n mica afacere cu o cafenea literar? la Paris, Felix, ?i propune o c?l?torie ca ?nceput pentru o nou? via??, Diane alege s? ?ndeplineasc? o mai veche dorin?? a fostului ei so? ?i se refugiaz? departe de lume, ?ntr-o mic? a?ezare din Irlanda.O ?nt?lnire nea?teptat? cu un b?rbat taciturn o face pe Diane s? vad? din nou lumea cu ?ncredere ?i cu for?? reg?sit?.?Aceast? poveste despre ?mp?carea cu sine con?ine dialoguri conving?toare ?i e spus? ?ntr-un stil simplu, nepreten?ios, av?nd chiar ?i accente de umor.“ – Le ParisienProfund ?i emo?ionant, romanul lui Agnès Martin-Lugand sondeaz? cu luciditate cea mai cumplit? tragedie din via?a unui om. O carte care te marcheaz?.“ – Susan Wiggs??n ?ntuneric, am mers pe urmele lor, ?n ?nc?perea ?n care ne reuneam. Colin venea spre mine, eu ?i desf?ceam cravata, el m? s?ruta, Clara ne desp?r?ea, cinam, Colin o culca pe fiica noastr?, dup? care r?m?neam am?ndoi, cu siguran?a de a o ?ti pe Clara la c?ldur? ?n patul ei, cu degetul mare ?n gur?.Am realizat c? apartamentul nostru nu mai exista, ?mi dorisem s? r?m?n acolo ca s? p?strez totul neatins, dar gre?isem. Nu mai erau dosare, zgomotul cheii ?n u??, alerg?turi pe parchet. Nu aveam s? mai revin niciodat? aici.“

The first book written by C. S. Lewis after his conversion, The Pilgrim's Regress is, in a sense, the record of Lewis's own search for meaning and spiritual satisfaction a search that eventually led him to Christianity.Here is the story of the pilgrim John and his odyssey to an enchanting island which has created in him an intense longing; a mysterious, sweet desire. John's pursuit of this desire takes him through adventures with such people as Mr. Enlightenment, Media Halfways, Mr. Mammon, Mother Kirk, Mr. Sensible, and Mr. Humanist and through such cities as Thrill and Eschropolis as well as the Valley of Humiliation.Though the dragons and giants here are different from those in Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, Lewis's allegory performs the same function of enabling the author to say simply and through fantasy what would otherwise have demanded a full-length philosophy of religion.

Abner Doubleday was an 1842 graduate of the U. S. Military Academy at West Point and a veteran of the Mexican war when he was assigned to Fort Moultrie in the summer of 1860. A Captain of Artillery, he served as second in command of the garrison at the historic fort when the curtain rose on the dramatic events leading to the outbreak of the War Between the States. Doubleday also had the distinction of aiming the first cannon fired in response to the bombardment of Fort Sumter.